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2018 Speaker Series with Kevin Anderson

Nature and the American Mind

Photo by Lacy Garner, Image of Big Bend National Park 2017

In 1967, the historian Roderick Nash published a foundational book about the American idea of wilderness entitled Wilderness and the American Mind. However, the American Mind contains more concepts of nature than just wilderness, and so, in 2018, we will explore the many aspects of Nature and the American Mind. This is a complex story that threads through our history and shapes beliefs, policies, science, and management practices today.

We will begin the year by exploring four main Concepts of American Nature – 1) wild nature, 2) pastoral nature, 3) urban nature, and 4) the newly emerging concept of resilient nature. Through the summer, we will look at Science and American Nature – how the development of American natural history, biology, ecology, and environmental science has been shaped by these concepts of nature and the unique context of the New World. We will finish 2018 by exploring the history of the Management of American Nature - the early battle between preservationists and conservationists, the past and future of American agriculture, new ecological ideas about cities and urban design, and the future of nature…or its demise.

Science and American Nature

Through the summer, we will look at Science and American Nature – how the development of American natural history, biology, ecology, and environmental science has been shaped by these concepts of nature and the unique context of the New World.

Management of American Nature

We will finish 2018 by exploring the history of the Management of American Nature - the early battle between preservationists and conservationists, the past and future of American agriculture, new ecological ideas about cities and urban design, and the future of nature…or its demise.

Kevin is a geographer and philosopher researching the nature of, and the nature in, urban wastelands. He studied at Allegheny College in Pennsylvania [BA], Durham University, England, Ohio University [MA] where he taught philosophy and symbolic logic. He received his Ph.D. in Geography from the University of Texas at Austin with a dissertation entitled: Marginal Nature: Urban Wastelands and the Geography of Nature. His research interests include sewage treatment, soil ecology, and sustainable agriculture, urban ecology and sustainability, riparian ecology, environmental history, philosophy, and literature. He is a co-founder of the Texas Riparian Association and the Upper Tisza Foundation in northeastern Hungary. He runs the Austin Water-Center for Environmental Research which focuses on soil, sewage recycling, and environmental trace contaminants; rivers, riparian ecology, and alluvial aquifers; cities, biodiversity, and avian ecology.

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Austin, Nature in the City is a blog featuring timely announcements and information about Austin’s trees and vegetation. Each month we’ll feature something different from seasonal tips, demonstration projects, and new reports, to opportunities for grants and volunteering. Sign up for the The Austin Treebune to receive monthly updates, and stay current by Liking us on Facebook.